Groom for Improvement!

Hi everyone!

Summer has well and truly arrived and that means Grooming Month at Arra Vets. We are booking up to a week in advance for grooms as people look to get their dogs deshedded and clipped down for the (hopefully) warm weeks ahead. But did you know that grooming can have many important health benefits, or that for some breeds grooming is essential to their health and wellbeing?

We see lots of new puppies coming into us at this time of year. Non-shedding breeds such as bichons, cavachons and poodles are increasing in popularity but what many new owners don’t realise is that these dogs require frequent brushing and regular grooming.

Since their coats do not shed the hair becomes matted after washing unless it is brushed through, so although well meaning owners may love keeping their pride and joy clean and fresh, without brushing the underlying hair becomes matted, tight and painful. The only solution is a tight clip and poor Fluffy exiting the grooming parlour looking a little more shorn than owners may like! We recommend getting your dog groomed every 6-8 weeks if you would like to keep Fluffy looking fluffy.

As for the shedding breeds, a lot of owners may have noticed an increase in hair on the couch these days. Our groomers Lisa and Laura use a powerful hairdryer which helps to blast out all that excess hair from the coat. A lighter coat can help your dog stay cool during warm weather.

Another important benefit of grooming is that the action of washing and brushing the coat removes dirt and draws the dogs’ natural oils through the hair, keeping it looking smooth and glossy. This is certainly something you can also do at home.

Lastly we find that our groomers frequently pick up on lumps, bumps and other niggling issues that owners (and vets) can miss. For example how often do you spend an hour and half or more completely focused every inch of your dog? Lisa recently found an odd lump on the face of a Westie in for grooming which was completely hidden from view until he was clipped. The cause was a nasty tooth abscess which required antibiotics and pain killers. Teeth, ears, gland issues and even arthritis can all come to light during grooming.

That’s about it for this month. See you next time when we’ll be chatting about neutering. Slán go fóill!